Just a Game
by turbine9
Summary: A game of heroes and villains unfolds. But who is really the hero in this story? Well, let's just say in a game of life and death, you better not lose. An exciting and suspenseful Teen Titans story.
1. Bishop Captured

_**Alright, this is will be a… more than interesting story. A lot of psychological warfare, and physical warfare, and a lot of heavy themes. Actually, depending on where this goes, the rating might change to M. Anyways, onto the show.**_

(Titans Tower, 3:00 AM. Raven POV)

I walked around the tower, unable to sleep. I tried everything. I tried remaking the bed, reading, drinking tea, Moby Dick (A/N: A joke. A funny one at that), even tiring myself out with one of Robin's training instructions, but it was no use. I couldn't fall back to sleep. So instead, I decided to wander onto the couch with a book until morning.

After an hour, I heard small sounds coming from the computer screen. The Titan alert.

"What idiot would cause a crime at 3 in the morning?" I asked myself, rubbing my eyes when the red light turned on. I shut off the alert in an effort to not wake up the others, than looked what happened. Apparently there's a suspicious signal coming from an office building at the other side of town. Well, it's not like I have anything better to do. I quickly put on my cloak and exited the tower, leaving a note before I left.

(Other side of town, unknown POV)

"The Titans have made their first move. The bishop has left the vicinity."

"…"

"The game has begun."

(Titans Tower, 8:00 AM.)

A small green boy walked out of the doorway of the Titans Living Room with a yawn. There was a warm and distant smile on his face once he saw some tofu on a plate next to him. He picked up the white block of soy and sat down while taking a bite out of it. He slowly grabbed the mysteriously stain covered remote and turned the huge TV on, flipping the channels. After rejecting the 50th channel, a small slip of paper flew from the bottom of the TV and onto his face. The teen took the paper off of his face and began to read it:

There was an alert. I'll be back as late as tomorrow night.

-Raven

Beast Boy smiled, than frowned. Then tried to do both at the same time, and failed. After throwing the letter behind the couch, he continued to flip through the channels until Robin came down. The leader automatically noticed something was off.

"Where's Raven? She's usually awake before any of us." Robin asked. Beast boy yawned then answered.

"She got an alert and went by herself. Said she'd be back by tomorrow." Robin nodded than roamed through the fridge.

(Robin POV)

A few minutes later, the other two Titans came down going about their normal activities (Video Games, odd Tamaranian dishes, etc.). Then, MY computer vibrated, signaling a new email. I decided to just ignore it and move on with my day. Then there was another vibration. And another. And another. Soon there was an email every second. I finally realized that they wouldn't stop coming and I had to get this checked out. I opened his email to see almost 50 emails from the same person, and counting. Crap…what the hell is happening? Better call an expert.

"Hey, Cyborg? Can you check something out?" I asked turning around to see him eating a full sub in one bite. He nodded then came up to look at the computer.

"What's up?"

"100 emails from one person, and they keep coming."

"Maybe it's just a spam. Did you read 'em?" I shook my head and clicked on the mail. The first few read:

Game

Game starting

Would you like to play, Grayson?

Bishop

Bishop captured

Kill Bishop

Bishop released

Bishop retired

Cyborg and I stared at the other remaining messages. They were mostly a lot of terms from different games, but they all had one thing in common. They all asked me to play. After reading the others, we stared at each other, than back at the computer.

"Still think it's a spam?" I asked smartly.

"Well, if it ain't a spam, than it's a code." Cyborg answered slightly annoyed and confused. Than we both heard something we didn't expect. Silence. There were no more vibrations coming out of the computer.

"Friends, what are you talking about?" Star asked from behind, making us both jump. Just then, there was another vibration, as I quickly shuffled to read the email:

Sorry about that, Boy Wonder. My associate can go a bit crazy, even on email. But let me translate what he was saying. It's a game, Robin. Not a simple game, but one you cannot deny. Chess, but not Chess. There are no rules to this game, only to make a move. Do you accept? Oh yeah, it doesn't matter. Because we made our first move. What's yours?

"First move…?" I repeated the contents of the email in my head hundreds of times. They captured our bishop. Or is it the other way around? No, that's impossible. We haven't even started yet.

"What'cha doing?" Beast Boy asked, quickly reading over the e-mail. "What, we're gonna play Chess with someone?" Cyborg looked at him with confused eyes.

"Bro, how would you ever come to THAT conclusion?" Cyborg asked. The green boy just shrugged and went back to sipping his coffee.

"Robin, what is a 'bishop'?" Star asked me after a few seconds.

"It's a piece in a game called chess, Star. I don't know who would be called a bishop, though. They're obviously using different pieces of code to confuse us. Whoever they are…" I explained. I could tell Starfire was still confused. Chess…but not chess. Yeah, I'm as confused as she is. I looked through the other emails. They all had something about "bishop", "taken", and "moves". At a loss for ideas, I decided the only thing to do is find whoever wrote this…and the bishop.

"Titans. I think the best plan of action is to search the city. We'll split up and report anything we find." They all nodded and stood up. "Titans, go!" (A/N: Sorry, I've always wanted to write that.).

(5 minutes later, Jump City.) 

I saw Starfire fly the opposite direction as the other two went their separate ways. I ran my way, looking for any clues or signs that would relate to the current problem. Little did I know someone was watching me.

Everything was normal. I checked almost all of the city for anything out of the ordinary. Nothing. Just people minding their own business. I turned on my communicator.

"Anything to report, Titans?" I asked.

"No, Robin." Starfire answered.

"Nope," Beast Boy answered.

"Notta." Cyborg said. I sighed a deep sigh. Shit…

I saw an elder looking lady fall on her back suddenly, dropping her bag and walker. I rushed to go and help her up, crouching down and giving her a hand. She willingly took it, pulling herself back on her walker.

"T-thank you, young boy." The lady said with a smile.

"It's fine, just be more careful." I said, almost running away as she grabbed my arm. I looked at her with a strange face.

"Please, boy. Let me repay you." She pleaded, rummaging through her bag. I held up my arms to stop her.

"No, it's fine, Lady. I couldn't take your money." I said with a nervous smile. HER smile grew wider and wider.

"Please boy, let me repay you." She repeated.

"Um, Ms..."

"Let me repay you." Just then, I heard a very unpleasant and loud sound. An explosion. I looked up to the building that exploded, smoke appearing off the top. The smoke started to form into letters.

'It's your move, Titans.' It read. I looked at it in wide eyes. People were running from the explosion as my communicator went crazy.

"What the hell was that?!"

"Robin, where the heck are you?!"

"ROBIN!"

I looked for the old woman, but she was nowhere in sight. That was their move. They were stalling.

"Titans! Save all the victims and pick up any bodies! JUST GO!" I yelled into the communicator while I ran towards the explosion.

(Beast Boy POV)

I flew towards the smoking building in the form of a pterodactyl. Another explosion went on within the building. Crap! They've got us right where they want us…I think. But we've got no choice but to save anyone in there. I flew through the glass window and into the building, shaping myself into a dog. There was fire everywhere, hiding my view. Except for one thing. A piece of dark clothing. I jumped through the flames to get to the other side. What I found was horrific. I quickly changed back into a human.

"Um…guys?" I requested.

"What is it , Beast Boy?! How many bodies?!" Robin yelled through the communicator.

"Only one…and it's someone we know." I answered.

"Who is it?" Starfire asked.

"Well, I'll just say one thing. I think Raven was the bishop!" I cried, tears streaming down my eyes as I stared at an injured and blood stained Raven.

 _ **So, how was that? Hopefully you guys like it. Tell me if you do in the reviews. I really respect everyone's opinion, so go ahead! Alright, see ya next time guys!**_


	2. My Mind and your Philosophies

_**I'm so sorry this Chapter's a little late. It's been a hectic week. Though I'm glad a lot of people like this story. I usually don't get this much support for a while, so thanks a bunch. And now, heroes and heroines, onto the show!**_

Raindrops fall onto the streets of Jump City. It wasn't even the least bit cloudy just a few minutes ago, and now the sun was completely hidden, no light coming from the sky. Some superstitious people would think this as a sign, but the villain hidden underground didn't quite care. He just grinned at his new victory. He was always incredibly ruthless, grinning at any time he won anything. Letting it go to his head even if he knows it's only a small one. His name? Slade Wilson.

Slade stared at his board in the middle of the room. It was positioned as chess, but a model of the city. He used chess pieces to position the different participants. It looked like chess, but it was anything but. All weaknesses were accounted for, conditions were set, he even made sure that any buildings that were destroyed in the slightest also had little chips torn off on the board. Slade moved the king, queen, knight, and rook pieces over to one of the buildings sheltering the sideways bishop. Sideways showed conditions with examples like injury, poison, or comas. Off the map showed death or disintegration. And straight up just meant in play. There were other various rules that came in play later, but right now, all Slade cared about was moving the pieces slowly to the building.

"How the hell do you even play that?" A female voice said from atop the stairs. Slade turned around to see the young and beautiful Selina Kyle. Slade just chuckled and turned back to his game.

"It's pretty simple really. It's a model of the city, meaning I can move anyone wherever I want." He smirked, picking up the queen just to stare at the chess piece.

"But don't they actually need to be in that position in real life for you to move them around the board?"

"Yes, but I'm controlling the Titans by this point. Robin can be so predictable sometimes." Selina grumbled a little.

"Ugh. Boy Blunder, really? Can't believe the boss put us up to a challenge with them. I mean, why would HE have any interest in them. On that topic, why are you working under anyone? Especially someone you haven't even met yet." Selina asked. It was true. Both villains haven't really seen their so called "boss" even for a second. Not even his name was known by the two.

"Not having seen the boss is supposed to give you curiosity of who or what he really is, am I right?"

"I still live by the saying 'curiosity killed the cat'." Catwoman interrupted, looking up with a bit of fright and boredom.

"Yes, well, Not seeing the boss gives me a sense of freedom. He even said himself that you would have full freedom to do whatever the hell you wanted. As long as I can have my fun, I don't really care who the boss is. The boss is just starting the game, nothing more. I'm sure you get it, Selina." Slade smirked under his mask.

"You really are evil. Though not that I can't say the same about myself…"

"Evil is a word that gets passed around too much. The true definition of evil is a being who does harm to another. In other words, every living thing on this planet can be called evil. We're just adventurers. Philosophers. Just something the world created." Selina sat down next to the assassin and thought about what he said. She decided to shrug it off and look at the board representing the city.

"Is it my turn yet?"

"Robin's got to make his move first. And I'm sure someone else is going to want to pitch in as well at some point." Slade explained, resting his head on his hands.

"So, can we do anything in the meantime?" Slade thought for a moment.

"We could do some persuading." Selina smiled and walked out of the room, leaving Slade and his board. "Don't do anything stupid, Robin…I've still got a plan I need to test out…" Slade looked at where the other pieces were positioned once more. "I will break you, Grayson. I will break you." He walked out of the room after that statement, turning off the lights.

(Meanwhile, Titans Tower Infirmary)

Robin, Cyborg, and Starfire all waited outside of the infirmary, giving BeastBoy some time with the unconscious half-demon. Things got out of hand, and they all knew it. They should have been more concerned about where Raven went, they should've tried to contact her right when they were going to investigate the odd e-mails. There were a lot of things they should've done, but right now, all they could do is wait.

"Going for a walk." Robin stated in a monotone voice, standing up out of his chair. He walked by the other two, Starfire taking a glance at the boy. She quickly flew over, following at Robin's pace.

"Robin, you are aware this is not your fault?" She asked, trying to reassure Robin. He stopped, looking down. "Maybe we can do a search and look for the culprits?"

"Star, I've said it hundreds of times. The only priority here is Raven's health, and that's it." He said and continued walking. The truth was, he really did want to strike back, or in this case, make a move. But he couldn't. Raven was in a coma and the rest of the team was incredibly depressed. There was no getting around those two facts. And because of them, Robin would just get extremely careful, the opposite of what he really is. He walked down the corridors, and opened the doors, walking out of the T-shaped tower. The fresh air felt good on his cheeks, giving him a false sense of relaxation. A few minutes later, he sat down at the edge of the island, letting the water hit his shoes.

He thought about the contents of the day, as his face got scrunched up with sadness and anger. He picked up a nearby pebble and threw it into the water. It bounced on the top three times before sinking.

"Make a move…why would I do that? I can't risk anyone else getting hurt because of my false leadership. Even if I did…what good what it do? It just means that they got what they wanted. It means were playing." He mumbled to himself, throwing another rock. It's a game. Who knew who the hell hosted this game, nor did he care. All he wanted was for it to end. No…he had a feeling in his body. A new feeling. He wanted to win.

(Raven's mind) 

Raven wandered around the seemingly empty void, looking for anything that would wake her up, but to no avail. She knew she was unconscious, and she knew her fellow Titans found her, but she also knew they must be in constant pain, waiting for her to wake up. Personally, she had a lot of feelings about these last few events. Sadness, anger, frustration, and boredom. She really couldn't get away from those feelings, but she didn't know what to do. There was nothing in her mind but her right now…or so she thought.

"Raven. I'm glad you began to wander." A voice said from the distance as Raven's ears perked up. She couldn't make where the voice was coming from, or the person that owned it. She went on the defensive, holding her arms up. "Why so hostile already? I just wanted to propose a challenge. Are you willing to hear me out?"

"Yeah, like hell." She snapped. The voice just chuckled.

"Well, it seems you don't have a choice. Fight me." The voice demanded.

"How can I fight you? I doubt you even exist." Raven asked in a matter-of-fact way.

"It is true, I do not exist. But guess what I can MAKE exist?" He snickered. Suddenly, a huge being appeared right in front of Raven. It seemed…incomplete. Though that quality made the brute even more terrifying to Raven. She gulped loudly, than tried to calm herself down, sheathing her arms into her magic to get ready for any attack. But the thing was, it did nothing. Just stood there menacingly in front of the purple haired girl. Now she wasn't as terrified, more confused. "You know what? I've changed my mind. I think I know something that will be a bit more effective." The towering being shrunk at an alarming rate, turning into the shape of a boy. A short one at that. Then eventually details were added in, including eyes, spiky hair, and teeth. Eventually, the figure was complete, leaving Raven in complete shock. The person she had to fight…was Beast Boy?!

 _ **I'm sorry I had to end at this moment, but I seriously need to move on to my other stories. Again, thanks for reading, and I'll see you next chapter!**_


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